Stolen New Zealand, Australia Cars Seized Here

Sydney : Stolen vehicles from Australia and New Zealand have been seized at Lautoka Wharf in a big car racket. The Fiji Revenue and Customs Service intercepted the vehicles imported by agents here to be resold.

FRCS chief executive officer Vishvanath Das confirmed in a statement that: “Over the past week, two motor vehicles that were reported stolen in New Zealand were smuggled into the country under the guise of spare parts and furniture, but were intercepted at Lautoka Wharf by Custom officers.”

Interceptions of the same nature were also made by Customs officers in 2018 for stolen vehicles imported from Australia.

Mr Das said that the cars were part of a big racket.

“Evidence is being gathered in what is beginning to look like a highly connected network of individuals working within organisations with intent to make money from proceeds of criminal activity.”

In one case, the criminals waited more than a year before shipping the vehicles to Fiji.

In the latest incident, investigations into the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) revealed that a Toyota Hilux which was registered as a rental car in New Zealand was reported stolen on December 8 2017, while the Nissan Navara which was registered as a private vehicle in New Zealand was reported stolen on December 4 2018.